This section is intended to provide a background or context to the invention that is, inter alia, recited in the claims. The description herein may include concepts that could be pursued, but are not necessarily ones that have been previously conceived or pursued. Therefore, unless otherwise indicated herein, what is described in this section is not prior art to the description and claims in this application and is not admitted to be prior art by inclusion in this section.
Oxidative dehydrogenation (ODH) catalysis is a current technology used for industrial chemical synthesis with a potential for improved feed stock efficiencies, environmental impact, and energy savings. In particular, the first step of oxidative dehydrogenation of short-chain alkanes (ethane, propane, and butane) is a process which, in its current form, tends to have less than ideal energy consumption and specific conversion.
Given that short chain alkenes represent a primary feedstock for the large scale production of a wide range of industrial materials, this step (and the oxidative dehydrogenation process in general) has a particular interest for development of new catalytic materials.